17 Interesting Things I Learned From Benny Blanco’s New Book
The beats for Rihanna’s “Diamonds” were originally pitched to Eminem!
Recently, Benny published a second book — F*ck Failure, which is about how he learned to embrace failure and find freedom in it. He uses personal anecdotes and practical tips to encourage readers to go after their goals.
So, here are 17 interesting things I learned from F*ck Failure by Benny Blanco:
1.
Benny and Selena weren’t love at first sight; it was more of a slowburn friends-to-lovers. They initially met around 15 years ago, but it was another five to six years until they worked together. Then, another five or six years passed, and they worked together again. From there, they became casual friends. Finally, a few years later, they got together, and they were married in 2025.
2.
He gives Selena the space she needs to feel frustrated or vent about things without trying to step in and fix everything.
3.
Benny almost gave up on his music dreams after Disco D, the 26-year-old producer he interned for when he was trying to start his music career, died by suicide. More than just a boss, Disco D had also been his close friend and mentor, and so he decided to keep going and carry his legacy forward.
4.
There were some intense moments during his internship with Disco D. Once, when Benny was setting up a TV for a meeting, the producer allegedly decided he wasn’t doing it quickly enough and hit him on the back with a bamboo stick. Another time, when Benny purchased the wrong groceries, Disco D purportedly poured milk and cereal over his head while other people watched. However, Benny felt that Disco D was harder on him than on the other interns because he believed he’d go on to be the most successful.
5.
Early in his career, Benny co-produced a song for “Stephanie” with another producer named “Tim,” who only paid him $1,500 and told him to pay his dues. A few years later, Benny passed on the opportunity to work with Tim and an artist named “John.” But a year later, John and Tim released a song that allegedly used part of Benny’s beat from Stephanie’s song without Benny’s permission. When Benny confronted Tim about it, he allegedly reminded him that he had more money and threatened to drain Benny’s bank account with legal fees. Benny felt powerless, and he had to work with Tim a few more times. However, he stopped collaborating with him as soon as possible. But Tim had purportedly mistreated many people, and eventually, karma came calling.
6.
When Benny and Ed Sheeran first started working on the song that would become “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber, Ed, who typically writes inspired by his own experiences, was trying to write a The Graduate-inspired track about sleeping with an older woman. However, when they both agreed the song sucked, Benny got Ed to open up about what was going on in his life. Fresh out of a breakup, Ed didn’t want his ex to know he was still thinking about her so much. So, that became the story behind the song instead.
7.
He spent half of his first big paycheck from producing on a diamond bracelet. However, he lost the bracelet while sledding over a frozen lake back home in Virginia.
8.
When Benny performed in a live version of The Eric Andre Show in 2024, he had to chug a beer, then a Red Bull, and finally the world’s hottest hot sauce. Some of the sauce landed in his eye, and the burning was so bad that he dissociated. When he came to, he was crowd surfing. Eventually, he ended up with burns all over his face and had to be rushed to the hospital. The next day was Selena’s birthday, but he called her at 1:30 in the morning. She immediately left Malibu, where she was staying with friends, and met him at the hospital 90 minutes away. Early the next morning, she drove back to Malibu before anyone noticed she’d left.
9.
About 14 years ago, he helped Charli XCX through a panic attack at a songwriting camp. He grabbed two handfuls of ice and had her hold them until they melted, which helped calm her anxiety.
10.
The beats that became “Diamonds” by Rihanna were initially pitched to Eminem. After months of silence from Eminem’s manager, Benny and his co-writers, Mikkel S. Eriksen and Tor E. Hermansen (aka the duo Stargate), played the track for Sia, and within just 15 minutes, they had the entire song finished. Stargate pitched it to Rihanna, who recorded it the very next day. Then, she released it just two days later!
11.
When Benny was only 13, he started networking in the music industry by sending Myspace messages to record labels and any industry pros whose information he could find. He once cold-called the president of Jay-Z’s label. Pretending to be the rapper’s attorney, he told the assistant that he had an urgent need to speak about Jay-Z’s contract, so she patched him through to her boss. However, when Benny revealed his identity and pitched his demo, the president immediately hung up.
12.
Benny said that after he and Ed Sheeran watched the 2017 docuseries The Defiant Ones (which is about Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine), he was inspired to pursue his own career as an artist, not just a producer. With Ed’s blessing, he turned a demo they’d been working on together into his debut single — “Eastside” with Halsey and Khalid.
13.
As a teenager, he’d skip school to take a four-hour bus ride from Washington, DC, to NYC and meet with labels.
14.
Early in his career, Benny struggled to enjoy his success because he was always striving toward the next thing, never slowing down to enjoy time with his loved ones or look after himself. He ended up being hospitalized for exhaustion.
15.
He wakes up at 6 a.m. so he can spend time with Selena and their dogs before starting work calls at 7.
16.
Here’s how Benny’s cookbook came about: He’s always been a passionate home cook, and he started throwing dinner parties to share it with others. Literary agent Sarah Passick heard about the parties from his friend, Jake Cohen, who also suggested she ask if Benny was interested in working on a book.
17.
And finally, he wants to write another cookbook with Selena — who, if you don’t remember, hosted her own cooking show, Selena + Chef.
Overall, this is just a taste of F*ck Failure — the bulk of the book is self-help. Benny’s voice is approachable, his advice is actionable, and his personal anecdotes keep you interested. F*ck Failure is now available on Amazon or Bookshop.com.
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